Moal Coachworks of Oakland, California crafted a 1936 Ford roadster that’s arguably like no other 1936 we have ever seen.

The longer all of us remain involved with hot rods the greater the chance we will eventually see them all. And then along comes Eric Zausner of San Francisco who enlisted Moal Coachworks of Oakland, California to craft a 1936 Ford roadster that’s arguably like no other 1936 we have ever seen. This roadster is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece and doubtlessly answered the question posed by Eric, “I want something special with a check list of World War II vintage appointments.”

It was Eric’s desire to drive his hot rod in road rallies and other sporty car events. However, this hot rod had to capture the feeling of what a returning World War II fighter pilot might be looking for to satisfy the adrenalin rush that he most assuredly experienced on a daily basis. Eric wanted this returning vet to walk out into his garage and see his once proud 1936 Ford roadster nearly forgotten, covered up in the back of the barn and loaded down with bailing wire and dust—but imagine. Standing there he could imagine what could be done to recapture the exhilaration he had just left behind. The coupe would need supercharged performance, aircraft instrumentation and most assuredly a cockpit canopy that opened, all encapsulated in a streamlined yet meticulously handcrafted aluminum body. There’s no denying that the AeroSport isn’t for everyone but it most assuredly will reel you in with the stunning imagination and craftsmanship used throughout.

Where to start? How about 1936 as the AeroSport did begin its lengthily and highly unusual path to us today as an original piece of Henry Ford vintage tin—a 1936 roadster. The Oakland-based shop is and has been known for a very long time as a place where coach building takes place. Moal’s shop is a family affair with all hands on-deck, so to speak with sons David and Michael working alongside Mom and Pops—Teresa and Steve. There are other craftsman present, such as Alberto Hernandez who was instrumental in the design of the car and especially the top and interior. Al Aguyao used a PPG gray metallic to paint the Aerosport while C.J. reeled off plenty of wire and handled the electrical chores. Others involved in the build from Moal’s are Bob Munroe and Sollis. The stunning aluminum work, especially the fenders, removable rear fender skirts, rear roll pan, hood panels, lift-off top, tonneau cover, and rear tail were all formed by Jimmy—a longtime fixture himself at Moal’s.

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While it may be difficult to point to any one feature as the distinctive element, there are so many, recognizing that the custom top, reminiscent of an aircraft canopy, crafted by Jimmy from Moal’s in aluminum, and equipped with fully functioning gullwing doors is as good a place as any to start. The canopy required that the cockpit opening be reshaped to comply with the top’s new demands and in turn the decklid was also massaged out of aluminum. From here the body underwent a full-on reshaping as the rear portion was shortened, the hood was lengthened, and the pontoon-like alloy fenders were added at the corners, complete with removable rear fender skirts. (Note in the photos the dramatic difference the car’s appearance takes on with and without skirts.) More aluminum work was to come from the English wheel in the shape of a four-piece hood neatly fitted behind the genie 1936 grille and insert. The body’s trim, such as the dual outside mirrors, headlights, taillights, license plate recess, gas filler cap, and hood side exhaust reliefs are all examples of continued craftsmanship to be found at Moal’s. Many of the individual trim pieces are chromed and the brightwork was handled by another California standard—Sherm’s Custom Plating of Sacramento.

After you have spent the better part of your lunch hour looking over the sheetmetal from one end to another take a deep breath and look inside. The interior is a collection of vintage aircraft elements as well as freshly fabricated inspired to work together to yield a distinctive cockpit appearance that serves this low, very low flying AeroSport. The fabricated aluminum dashboard houses several inserts fashioned after dash panels typically found on an airplane in that they quickly come out of the main panel for easy gauge/wiring maintenance. In front of the driver (pilot) one panel holds the Classic Instruments Moal Bomber Gauges that features a single gauge that indicates both oil and water temps. Adjacent are four gauges; one that handles left and another that handles right boost pressures, another for oil psi, and another for left and right exhaust gas temps. Above the panel is a traditional aviation dash light found on many of today’s airplanes. The panel that rests in view of the passenger (co-pilot) houses several vintage gauges in the altimeter and 24-hour clock. More gauges can be seen in the Moal Bomber air temp and the aircraft compass. Resting between the two panels and within easy sight of the driver are the Moal Bomber 10-grand tach, 200-mph speedo, and a volt and amp gauge. There are also fuel tank cutoff switches and an original aviation ignition switch panel and resting below this vintage stock are two more gauges; one for the fuel level and one for fuel psi. Another of the aviation-style removable dash panels sits far left on the dash and houses the Vintage Air A/C and heat controls, which exit their fresh air-heat-air conditioned mixture through Moal over-the-counter faire in the Hide-a-Vents. To the far right of the dash is a vintage Tapley & Co. brake gauge that was used back in the day to monitor acceleration/deceleration. More custom aluminum work includes the perimeter door panels drilled with a variation of hole sizes, a custom Moal shifter, and a Ferrari steering column topped with a Moal fabricated steering wheel. The seating is made up of two Moal fabricated suspension bucket seats that feature intertwined brown leather straps that were stitched by Ken Nemanic and feature aircraft seatbelts with the U.S. Air Force insignia. Plenty of Dynamat is used to control excess heat and sound beneath the black rubber floor covering.

All of this body and interior work has to rest upon a platform and why wouldn’t it be a piece of Moal custom fabrication as well. The stock wheelbase Ford rests on Moal reworked 1936 ’rails that were reshaped, boxed, and enhanced with tubular crossmembers. In front the suspension is a Moal fabricated independent that utilizes Wilwood dropped spindles, rack-and-pinion steering, torsion bars from Schroeder Racing, and single-adjustable coilover shocks from Strange Engineering. Braking begins with the Moal Roadchamp pedal assembly that actuates both the Moal twin-master cylinder and hydraulic clutch package housed around Wilwood calipers and 12-inch rotors. The rear suspension is based on a Moal-modified De Dion differential fit with 4.11 gears, Speedway Engineering limited-slip differential within a Speedway quick-change, and Drive Line Service axles, plus a Moal centering-guide Panhard bar. The rear encompasses Schroeder Racing torsion bars, Strange Engineering double-adjustable shocks, and inboard mounted-finned Buick brake drums. At the corners is a combination of Dayton 16-inch wires wrapped with Coker Classic black wall rubber.

Any hot rod worthy of its heritage must have power. Vintage power is a plus and the AeroSport is no exception. Keeping with the Ford in a Ford vibe Eric opted to go with an era correct 1955 Y-block at 312 cubes built by one of the country’s master engine builders Dan Brewer of Shaver Racing Engines in Torrance, California. The original E-code motor and cast-iron heads use stock rockers over Del West valves and springs with era-correct Thunderbird valve covers. Nestled between the iron heads is an original factory dual-quad intake with a pair of Edelbrock carbs. David Moal designed and machined (CNC) the motor plate that holds the blowers and the airboxes on top of the carburetors. Pumping the supercharged air through the dual four barrels is a pair of modern Paxton Novi turbos. (Robert Paxton McCulloch first developed a pancake-looking supercharger that mounted to the Ford Flathead intake back in 1937. From here Paxton engineers developed their modern superchargers that were used on the Novi Indy race cars; hence the Paxton Novi terminology. These engines developed 650 hp from 180 ci. Ford dealers also retailed the VS57 supercharger system as a dealer-installed “power pack” option. The supercharger came with the standard four-barrel but there were dual-quad setups and even fewer tri-power setups known to be produced. After the 1957 model year it is reported approximately 211 Thunderbird “Blower Birds” were produced with Paxton, and a number of other Ford cars were fitted including the Fairlane.)

Inside is a nest full of proven components in a COMP Cams ’shaft, SCAT forged rods wrapped around a stock crank with JE 9.2:1 compression pistons with JE rings, Clevite 77 bearings, and all the spinning pieces are balanced and then blueprinted to maximize performance. Making sure the V-8 keeps its cool is a brass and copper Mattson’s Custom Radiator cooler in conjunction with a SPAL electric fan and a Ford water pump. Firing the fuel load is Ford electronic ignition with Taylor wires; a Powermaster alternator is also used. The spent gases work their way out through custom headers, a pair of 2-1/2-inch exhaust pipe, and custom mufflers all fabricated in the Moal shop. All of this adds up to 540 hp and 500 lb-ft of torque, making the AeroSport a powerful performer as well as a powerful-looking hot rod. A Moal fabricated shifter works the Tremec TKO 500 five-speed box that moves the power back to the rear via a Drive Line Service driveshaft.

No question the AeroSport is one of the most unusual hot rods any of us will see. It meets all the criteria for a hot rod: answers the owner’s desire for a unique car, is powerful, the build is both creative and masterfully done, and it can be driven. Should you find yourself pulled up to this 1936 Ford roadster any time soon take the time to look—you will be thankful.